ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Power
UDAY 2.0 Scheme
Electricity is a concurrent subject, and the distribution of electricity is handled by the states and state distribution utilities. In the Budget speech of year 2020-21, Government have informed Parliament that it would take measures to improve the viability of Distribution Companies , and also that the Ministry of Power intends to promote smart metering. Decisions have also been taken in the Government to incentivize and enable states to undertake effective DISCOM reforms; and link central sector schemes to institutional reforms. However, no new scheme regarding the above has been approved yet.
While the distribution utilities in Haryana have turned around under UDAY, some utilities have not been able to adhere to the reform paths envisaged under UDAY. The reasons for the same include tariffs not being reflective of costs; inadequate budgeting of subsidies; high aggregate technical and commercial  losses etc. States have been advised to clear their Government Department dues and ensure monthly clearance of the same; put in place a strict system of energy accounting; ensure timely payment of subsidy every month; begin a campaign to reduce AT&C losses; and conversion of all consumer meters into smart prepaid meters/prepaid meters in a period of 3 years.
Ministry of Science & Technology
Nanorod based oxygen sensor working at room temperature can save lives in places like underground mines, higher altitudes
Indian Scientists have developed a nanorods-based oxygen sensor which works at room temperature with assistance of UV irradiation and can detect oxygen gas concentrations in places such as underground mines, at higher altitudes, inside aeroplanes and research labs.
Monitoring O2 concentration in very low ppm-level is of paramount importance, and a fast and selective oxygen sensor working at room temperature can save lives in places like underground mines, higher altitudes and improve the accuracy of numerous experiments being conducted in research labs.
A team of scientists led by Dr S. Angappane, a Scientist at the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences , an autonomous research institute under the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, have fabricated a metal oxide semiconductor  nanorods array-based oxygen sensor which works at room temperature with assistance of UV irradiation and can detect broad ppm range of oxygen gas concentrations. They used titanium oxide for the purpose and work, involving Hiran Jyothilal, Gaurav Shukla, Sunil Walia, and Bharath SP led by Dr S. Angappane, published in the journal Materials Research Bulletin.
The team showed that the sensor gives the best sensitivity with low power consumption and works at room temperature. The fabricated sensors exhibited response and recovery times of around 3 sec and 10 sec, respectively, at 1000 ppm. The sensor works in oxygen concentrations ranging from 25 ppm to 10 lakh ppm  with good stability. The superior sensing property is attributed to the enhanced electrical conductivity, excitons  created, and desorption of water molecules  from the sensor surface by UV irradiation, facilitating increased interaction of oxygen molecules with chromium incorporated in titanium dioxide slanted nanorods array present in the sensor.
The CeNS team is further working on miniaturising the sensor and its electronics interfacing with other gas sensors to fabricate a suitable electronic nose.
Fig:  An oxygen sensor device used for sensing experiments,  A room temperature sensing response plot of Cr-TiO2 based oxygen sensor device towards 1000ppm O2, which showed the best sensitivity,  Sensitivity comparison plot of TiO2/Cr-TiO2 based oxygen sensor devices towards different ppm range of O2,  Selectivity plot showing high sensitivity of TiO2/Cr-TiO2 based sensor devices towards O2.
Publication link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.materresbull.2021.111324
For further details, Dr. S. Angappane  can be contacted.
Ministry of Science & Technology
CSIR develops affordable Water Disinfection System “OneerTM”
The device will go a long way in meeting the requirements of potable water in rural and urban areas : Dr. Harsh Vardhan
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research ,Indian Institute of Toxicology Research , Lucknow has developed an innovative technology for “Drinking Water Disinfection System” with Trade name “OneerTM” which was transferred to M/s Bluebird Water Purifiers, New Delhi in the presence of Union Minister of Science & Technology and Vice-President, CSIR, Dr. Harsh Vardhan today. It is useful for continuous treatment of water and eliminates all disease causing pathogens such as virus, bacteria, fungi, protozoa and cyst to provide safe drinking water to domestic and communities settings as per National and International standards prescribed for potable water .
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that it is well known that infection through drinking water results in an increase in morbidity and mortality particularly amongst children and Oneer developed by CSIR-IITR ,will provide access to safe and clean drinking water at a cost of just 2 Paise / Ltr. Dr. Harsh Vardhan further added that the Community level model is of 450 LPH capacity which can be scaled up to 5000 to 1 lakh L/day; and is also maintenance and membrane free. “The technology will be helpful especially for rural people since it can be solar powered and this development is in line with the ‘Make in India’ Mission”, added the Union Minister.
Dr. Shkekar C Mande, Director General, CSIR and Secretary, DSIR lauded the efforts of CSIR-IITR Scientists in developing Oneer-a safe drinking water device especially for rural areas. He said that currently, a large proportion of India's rural community is consuming water that does not meet the WHO drinking water quality standards. According to the World Health Organization, "access to safe drinking-water is essential to health, a basic human right and a component of effective policy for health protection”.
CSIR is continuously focusing on translational research through Mission Projects and Fast Track Translational Research Projects to develop technologies and products focussed at unmet needs. One of the components of the programme is to enhance the quality of life of common people and remove drudgery.
The smaller unit of Oneer is particularly suitable for homes, street food vendors, and small establishments.
Election Commission
New Arrangements Made By Election Commission of India for Prompt and Accurate Dissemination of Results of Haryana & Maharashtra Assembly Elections and Bye-Elections to 51 ACs
(Team ICT headed by Dr Sandeep Saxena, Sr Deputy Election Commissioner and others with Shri. Sunil Arora, Chief Election Commissioner, in front of the Election Trends TV Panel at Nirvachan Sadan, New Delhi
In a first, the Election Commission of India has deployed an integrated ICT counting application which gives freedom to Returning Officers spread across the country to directly compute and enter the result data on the ECI new counting application. This application allows the Returning Officers to enter table-wise data in the software, thereby considerably reducing the time and makes the results & trends data error-free.
The counting software developed by the IT team of ECI called ENCORE  allows generation of various types of statutory reports during counting process which are mandatory for Returning Officers such as Form 20 Preparation/ Compilation of Final Result Sheet, 21C/D for Formal Declaration of Result and Form 21 E for Certificate of Return of Elections. The Returning Officer can download these system-generated reports after the counting is over and complete the statutory requirements in a hassle-free environment.
For the first time, the Election Commission of India has launched Election Trends TV, on which the graphically-rich micro-details of trends & results are published in real-time. As and when the counting data of each round is entered after officially been declared by the Returning Officers, the data is displayed on the Election Trends TV, without any manual intervention using advanced secure technologies. These panels can be customized and configured, for display automatically in public places using large TV Panels by Returning Officers & Chief Electoral Officers.
During today’s counting dissemination of trends and results are made with enhanced infographics and increased details through the ECI’s very popular mobile app ‘Voter Helpline App’ which is available from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store for free download. The user can bookmark their favourite candidate and closely follow the results in a comprehensive manner.
Prime Minister's Office
PM visits Jana Shakti Art Exhibition at National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi
Shares glimpses of Exhibition
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi visited Jana Shakti Art Exhibition at National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi today. The exhibition showcases wonderful works of art based on some of the themes in the Mann Ki Baat episodes.
The Prime Minister tweeted:
“Visited Jana Shakti at National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi. This is an exhibition of wonderful works of art based on some of the themes in the Mann Ki Baat episodes. I compliment all the artists who have enriched the exhibition with their creativity.”
“Here are some more glimpses from Jana Shakti exhibition at National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi.”
For more details: https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=1924012
Ministry of Law and Justice
Shri Justice Alok Kumar Verma elevated to be Judge of the Uttarakhand High Court
The President of India, in exercise of the power conferred by clause  of Article 217 of the Constitution of India, appointed Shri Justice Alok Kumar Verma, Additional Judge of the Uttarakhand High Court, to be a Judge of the Uttarakhand High Court, with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office. A notification in this regard was issued by the Department of Justice, Ministry of Law & Justice today.
Shri Justice Alok Kumar Verma, B.A., LL.B., joined the Judicial Service on 08.10.1990. He was appointed as an Additional Judge of Uttarakhand High Court on 27.05.2019 for a period of 2 years.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
COVID-19 UPDATE
186.72 cr vaccine doses have been administered so far under Nationwide Vaccination Drive
India's Active caseload currently stands at 11,860
Active cases stand at 0.03%
Recovery Rate currently at 98.76%
928 recoveries in the last 24 hours increases Total Recoveries to
4,25,11,701
1,247 new cases recorded in the last 24 hours
Daily positivity rate 
Weekly Positivity Rate 
83.25 cr Total Tests conducted so far; 4,01,909 tests conducted in the last 24 hours
Ministry of Jal Shakti
Cabinet approves Revised Cost of completion of balance works of North Koel Reservoir Project in Bihar & Jharkhand
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs Chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval to a proposal of Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti to complete the balance works of North Koel Reservoir Project at a revised Cost of Rs. 2,430.76 crore  as against the balance cost of Rs.1,622.27 crore  approved earlier in August, 2017.
On completion of the balance works, project would provide additional annual irrigation to 42,301 ha in the four drought prone districts of Jharkhand and Bihar.
North Koel Reservoir Project is an inter-State major irrigation project with command area lying in the two States of Bihar and Jharkhand. The project comprises a dam on North Koel river near Kutku village , a barrage 96 km downstream of the dam , Right Main Canal  and Left Main Canal  taking off from the barrage. The Construction of dam and ancillary activities started in the year 1972 by Govt. of Bihar from its own resources. The work continued till 1993 and was stopped in that year by the Forest Department, Govt. of Bihar. Due to apprehension that water accumulated in the dam would threaten the Betla National Park and Palamu Tiger Reserve, the work on dam was at a standstill. The project subsequent to stoppage of work was providing annual irrigation to 71,720 hectares. After bifurcation of Bihar in November 2000, the head works i.e. Dam and Barrage lie in Jharkhand. Also the entire 11.89 km Left Main Canal  from Mohammadganj barrage lies in Jharkhand. However, out of 110.44 km of Right Main Canal , first 31.40 km lies in Jharkhand and the remaining 79.04 km lies in Bihar. In the year 2016, the Govt. of India decided to provide assistance for completion of balance works of the North Koel Reservoir Project in order to operationalise the project to realise the envisaged benefits. It was decided to reduce the reservoir level so as to save the core area of Palamu Tiger Reserve. The proposal to complete the balance works of the Project at an estimated expenditure of Rs.1622.27 crore was approved by Union Cabinet in August 2017.
Subsequently, at the request of both State Governments, certain other components were found necessary to be included in the project. Complete lining of RMC and LMC was also regarded essential from technical considerations to derive envisaged irrigation potential. Thus, the works of Gaya distribution system, lining of RMC and LMC, remodeling of enroute structures, construction of a few new structures and one time Special Package for R&R of Project Affected Families  were to be provided for in the updated cost estimate. Accordingly, Revised Cost Estimate of the project was prepared. Out of the cost of balance works of Rs.2430.76 crore, the Central would provide Rs.1836.41 crore.
Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs
Urban Climate Film Festival to Show Environmental, Social & Economic Impacts of Climate Change on Urban Settlements
Festival being organised under U20 with support from MoHUA, AFD and European Union
The first-ever Urban Climate Film Festival, that aspires to employ the powerful medium of film to enlighten audiences about the environmental, social and economic impacts of climate change on urban settlements, is going to take place in New Town, Kolkata from 3rd to 5th June 2023.
16 films from 12 countries are scheduled to be screened, along with Q&A sessions with filmmakers in order to spark conversations about building climate-resilient cities and invite inputs from the public; further encouraging the citizens to undertake ‘environmentally responsible behavior’ in line with the U20 priority areas and the Hon. Prime Minister’s clarion call through the LiFE Mission.
Launched in New Delhi in March 2023, the film festival is being organised by National Institute of Urban Affairs, through the CITIIS program under the engagement events of U20 . The festival is supported by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, the French Development Agency , the European Union and the New Town Kolkata Green Smart City Corporation Limited.
The global call for entries for the festival had received an overwhelming response with 150 films submitted from 20 countries. These were evaluated by a jury that comprised:
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Dr Surbhi Dahiya 
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Dr Pranab Patar 
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Mr Sabyesachi Bharti 
The festival will also celebrate World Environment Day on 5th June with a special closing ceremony, which will be graced by Mr. Didier Talpain, Consul General of France in Kolkata; Mr. Debashis Sen, Managing Director, West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation; Mr. Hitesh Vaidya, Director, National Institute of Urban Affairs; Mrs. Meghna Pal, CEO, NKGSCCL; and Mr. Naim Keruwala, Program Director, CITIIS.
Entry to the Urban Climate Film Festival is free and open for all.
Attendees can view the screening schedule and register themselves for the festival here: https://citiis.niua.in/event/urbanclimatefilmfestival
Background:
The Urban Climate Film Festival was launched on 24th March at Alliance Française in New Delhi. After a successful run in Delhi, the festival travelled to Mumbai, where it was hosted at Alliance Française de Bombay. The festival in Delhi and Mumbai showcased a curated selection of films by a diverse pool of filmmakers from countries like India, France, Iran, and the USA. The screenings were complemented by panel discussions and special sessions where audiences interacted with filmmakers.
Ministry of Defence
Inauguration of Southern Star Army Wives Welfare Association  Donation Centre 
Pune : 1 March 2023
Southern Star AWWA Donation Centre Akshaypatra was commissioned at Maitri Shopping Complex, Camp, Pune on 27 Feb 2023. This noble initiative has been envisioned by Southern Army Commander Lt Gen Ajai Kumar Singh and implemented under the aegis of Southern Star Army Wives Welfare Association.
Items ranging from clothes and household items to food stuff can now be donated by the volunteers to Akshaypatra.
To ensure optimal utilisation of donated items, Southern Star AWWA has partnered with the renowned NGO Goodwill India from Pune. The NGO headed by Mr Kalidas Haribhau More and his team will distribute the donated items to the needy. Goodwill India, Pune, has a 10 year track record of providing food, clothing and daily essentials to the underprivileged and specially abled persons living in various establishments in Pune.
It is due to the sincere efforts of Ex-officio Regional President Southern Star AWWA, Mrs Subeena Arora and her team that this project has been executed in record time. The Southern Star AWWA is determined to see Akshayapatra contributing to assist more needy people.
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Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Busting Myths of Vaccination
Generation of COVID-19 vaccination certificate is linked to the updation of Status by the Vaccinator on Site
Weblink to download certificate is sent through Text SMS
Govt of India has issued advisory to ensure same day Vaccination Certificates to be issued to all vaccinated beneficiaries
Citizens also must check SMS confirmation post vaccine dose administration before leaving the vaccination centre
Government of India has been supporting the efforts of States and UTs for an effective Vaccination drive under the ‘Whole of Government” approach since 16th January, this year. In order to streamline the availability of the vaccine doses, Central Government has been constantly in touch with the vaccine manufacturers and has opened up different procurement options for states/UTs since 1st May 2021.
There have been some unfounded media reports on no certificates issued post COVID vaccination. These reports are incorrect and are not supported by full information on the matter.
The Co-WIN platform facilitates registration , scheduling of appointments, vaccination & certification of beneficiary during COVID-19 vaccination process.
Even though the beneficiary is registered online or on-site in Co-WIN, the most important step after vaccination of beneficiary is to update the status of vaccination in Co-WIN on the day of vaccination itself in the vaccinator module. If it is not possible to update the status of vaccination on same day of dose administration, the data entry of that session can be done on next day till 5 PM in Co-WIN portal. Thus, there is extended scope for data entry of vaccination on the next day also. This utility is provided to obviate the need for backlog data entry of vaccination.
The web link for COVID-19 vaccination certificate is available in the Text SMS sent to beneficiary after vaccination after successful updation of vaccination status in Co-WIN.
Further Govt of India has also issued advisory from time to time that Vaccination Certificates to be issued to all vaccinated beneficiaries on the same day of vaccination before they would exit the vaccination centre.
COVID-19 vaccination certificate can also be downloaded from Co-WIN Portal, or Arogya Setu/Umang Mobile Application. It can be downloaded after each dose .
It may be possible that the beneficiary’s vaccination status has not been updated by the vaccinator at the time of vaccination, this may lead to a person to not get a vaccination certificate from the CoWIN system. To eliminate this issue, CoWIN system will soon provide features to remove such errors. However, citizens are also advised to check if they received the confirmation SMS post administration of a vaccine dose. Receipt of confirmation SMS denotes that the status has been updated by the vaccinator. The citizens are also advised to check the certificate through the link provided in the confirmation SMS or by logging in to the CoWIN portal. In case any errors are noticed in the certificate, the same should immediately be brought to the attention of the vaccinator, who can then rectify the error.
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Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
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India’s Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage exceeds 208.95 Cr
Over 3.98 Cr 1st dose vaccines administered for age group 12-14 years
India's Active caseload currently stands at 1,01,343
12,608 new cases reported in the last 24 hours
Recovery Rate currently stands at 98.58%
Weekly Positivity Rate is presently at 4.20%
India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 208.95 Cr  as per provisional reports till 7 am today. This has been achieved through 2,77,65,601 sessions.
COVID-19 vaccination for the age group 12-14 years was started on 16 March, 2022. So far, more than 3.98 Cr  adolescents have been administered with the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Similarly, the COVID-19 precaution dose administration for age group 18-59 years also started from 10th April, 2022 onwards.
The break-up of the cumulative figure as per the provisional report till 7 am today include:
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Cumulative Vaccine Dose Coverage
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HCWs
|
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1st Dose
|
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1,04,13,328
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2nd Dose
|
|
1,01,00,084
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|
Precaution Dose
|
|
65,93,725
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FLWs
|
|
1st Dose
|
|
1,84,33,275
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2nd Dose
|
|
1,76,87,456
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Precaution Dose
|
|
1,28,16,972
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Age Group 12-14 years
|
|
1st Dose
|
|
3,98,46,763
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|
2nd Dose
|
|
2,93,46,650
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Age Group 15-18 years
|
|
1st Dose
|
|
6,15,08,462
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2nd Dose
|
|
5,18,54,238
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Age Group 18-44 years
|
|
1st Dose
|
|
56,01,35,522
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2nd Dose
|
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51,13,51,618
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Precaution Dose
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4,53,09,532
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Age Group 45-59 years
|
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1st Dose
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20,38,14,172
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2nd Dose
|
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19,58,95,343
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Precaution Dose
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2,71,57,678
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Over 60 years
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1st Dose
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12,75,25,220
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2nd Dose
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12,24,35,520
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Precaution Dose
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3,73,54,164
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Precaution Dose
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12,92,32,071
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Total
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2,08,95,79,722
India’s Active Caseload currently stands at 1,01,343. Active cases now constitute 0.23% of the country's total Positive Cases.
Consequently, India’s recovery rate stands at 98.58%. 16,251 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours and the cumulative tally of recovered patients  is now at 4,36,70,315.
12,608 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours.
The last 24 hours saw a total of 3,62,020 COVID-19 tests being conducted. India has so far conducted over 88.14 Cr  cumulative tests.
Weekly Positivity Rate in the country currently stands at 4.20% and the Daily Positivity rate is reported to be 3.48%.
Prime Minister's Office
PM bows to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji on his Parkash Purab
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has paid homage to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji on his Parkash Purab.
The Prime Minister tweeted :
"I bow to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji on his Parkash Purab. His unparalleled courage and commitment to values of truth as well as justice are very motivating. Sharing my speech from last year at the programme to mark his 400th Parkash Purab at the Red Fort."
"ਹਿੰਦ ਦੀ ਚਾਦਰ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਤੇਗ ਬਹਾਦਰ ਜੀ ਦੇ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼ ਪੁਰਬ ਮੌਕੇ ਉਹਨਾਂ ਅੱਗੇ ਸੀਸ ਝੁਕਾਉਂਦਾ ਹਾਂ। ਗੁਰੂ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਜੀ ਦੀ ਬੇਮਿਸਾਲ ਹਿੰਮਤ ਅਤੇ ਸੱਚਾਈ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ-ਨਾਲ ਨਿਆਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਕਦਰਾਂ-ਕੀਮਤਾਂ ਪ੍ਰਤੀ ਆਪ ਜੀ ਦੀ ਵਚਨਬੱਧਤਾ ਬਹੁਤ ਪ੍ਰੇਰਨਾਦਾਇਕ ਹੈ।
ਪਿਛਲੇ ਸਾਲ ਲਾਲ ਕਿਲ੍ਹੇ ‘ਤੇ ਮਨਾਏ ਗਏ ਉਹਨਾਂ ਦੇ 400ਵੇਂ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼ ਪੁਰਬ ਮੌਕੇ ਸਾਂਝੇ ਕੀਤੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਵਿਚਾਰ ਤੁਹਾਡੇ ਅੱਗੇ ਸਨਮੁੱਖ ਕਰ ਰਿਹਾ ਹਾਂ।"